Teel Time: The truth about Virginia Tech's BCS television ratings

Based on my Twitter timeline Tuesday – say that three times fast – there is some confusion, even anger, over the television ratings for last season’s Orange Bowl between Virginia Tech and Stanford.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell apparently started the uproar by disparaging the Hokies’ at-large bid to the Sugar Bowl. Questioning the contention that Tech is a TV draw, Rovell tweeted that Tech-Stanford is among the lowest-rated games in Bowl Championship Series history.

Hokies fans countered that Tech-Stanford is among the highest-rated college football games in ESPN annals.

Best I can tell, both camps are correct.

Pages 47 and 48 of the BCS media guide show the score, attendance and rating for each of the 57 BCS game since the system’s advent for the 1998 season. And indeed, Tech-Stanford matches the Iowa-Georgia Tech Orange Bowl from the season prior for the third-lowest rating (6.8).

Moreover, the lowest-rated BCS game (5.41) was the Tech-Cincinnati Orange Bowl in January 2009. Last season’s Oklahoma-Connecticut Fiesta Bowl is the next-lowest at 6.2.

So how can Tech-Stanford also rank among ESPN’s top draws?

Well, last season was the worldwide leader’s first televising the BCS. And all five of the games attracted audiences larger than its standard regular-season fare.

So with their involvement in two of the four least-watched BCS games, is it fair to label the Hokies poor TV draws? Are media misguided to suggest that the Sugar Bowl chose Virginia Tech, No. 11 in the BCS standings, instead of No. 7 Boise State or No. 8 Kansas State due, in part, to television appeal.

Absolutely not.

First, if the Hokies were TV poison, ESPN wouldn’t have signed off on their Sugar Bowl matchup with Michigan.

Third, the low-rated Hokies’ Orange Bowls included opponents with limited TV appeal – Stanford’s undergraduate enrollment is less than 7,000, and Cincinnati has negligible football heritage.

Finally, the 17.5 rating for Virginia Tech’s 1999 national championship encounter with Florida State in the Sugar Bowl ranks second in BCS history to the 21.7 for the Texas-Southern California Rose Bowl in January 2006.

Don’t think for a moment that was lost on Sugar Bowl officials Sunday when they selected Virginia Tech for the Jan. 3 game in New Orleans.

I can be reached at 247-4636 or by e-mail at dteel@dailypress.com. Follow me at twitter.com/DavidTeelatDP